The Lebanese President Michel Aoun called Monday on the political parties in the country to hold a national dialogue in order to agree on decentralization, a defense strategy, and a financial recovery plan.

In a televised address, President Aoun said that he tried to solve problems silently, adding that the political class frustrated his attempts in many cases.

“The solution first requires accountability, which means identifying those responsible for the collapse, as well as protecting people’s money and returning them to depositors, Aoun said, “It also requires transiting to a civil state and a new system based on broad administrative and financial decentralization.”

“The coming elections must be a referendum on this,” he noted.

“I tried to prevent the collapse and I called for several meetings and conferences, proposing solutions, but the system’s parties refused to give up any gains, without the taking the people into consideration,” Aoun said.

Aoun considered that defending the nation requires a cooperation between the people, army and resistance, adding that the state must assume the basic responsibility in this regard.

Source: Al-Manar English Website